Washington seems enveloped in a tong war over happenings at Veterans Affairs' hospitals. A lesser known but highly critical VA program expires this fall unless Congress acts. It's the Assisted Living Pilot Program for Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury. Several bills introduced to keep the popular program alive have become lost in the swirl of politics over more visible issues. At a time when the VA is under harsh scrutiny, one of its more successful programs is about to die. Alex Bolton is a staff writer at The Hill Newspaper. He discussed the program and some of the benefits it has accrued so far on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin and Emily Kopp.

The Department of Veterans Affairs says it has made significant strides in targeting its most complicated disability claims toward its most seasoned claims processing staff, but IG audits still find errors in nearly a third of compensation claims processed for Traumatic Brain Injury.

The Department of Defense announced today the appointment of Navy Capt. Paul S. Hammer, as the director of the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) in Arlington, Va.

Nine years of conflict have revolutionized the way the military treats people wounded in battle. That includes faster evacuations, better-executed trauma care networks, and huge advances in treating amputations and spinal-cord injuries.